I could sense I was in trouble as soon as I turned the TV on.
It was a new TV that my wife had just purchased. Since she was never able to program a VCR and still can’t figure out how to cut and paste, it falls to me to open the box, pull out the pieces and make it work. I didn’t mind changing diapers. I hate dealing with other people’s technology.
I got the parts together and plugged it in. I pressed the TV button on the remote and, wait for it, keep waiting. Still waiting. Eventually I was greeted by the words “Smart TV”. I knew I was in trouble. I went back to the instructions and all it told me to do was follow the directions on the screen. Thanks a lot.
I long for the days when you could take something out of the box, plug it in and turn it on. There was no confusion of who was owner and what was object. Now it is a process of jumping through hoops and making choices with consequences you can only guess at.
I started off trying to set it up with its smartness engaged. That involved getting out my computer and seeking through file after file looking for IP addresses and other nonsense that my geek son thrives on but are pointless to me. Then I had to try to remember the password he had created. After many tries and much frustration I had contact. It saw my wi-fi network and we were good to go. Then they brought out the legalese. I got about a fourth of the way through. I understood that the government could demand information. I wasn’t good with it, but I understood. I understood that they wanted me to take responsibility for anything that went wrong. I also understood that they wanted me to give them information and trust them with it. I backed out, went back to the first screen, realized I could set it up just as a TV and went that route.
It still took a lot of time trying to get all the channels to work and such but it is functioning as close to a normal TV as is possible. Unfortunately my wife likes to push buttons on the remote control without putting on her glasses. This means I am constantly being called in to figure out what she pushed and how to fix it.
Someone once said “any fool can ask questions that a wise man cannot answer”. That goes double for “smart” TV.
Give me a book.
homo unius libri
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Comments are welcome. Feel free to agree or disagree but keep it clean, courteous and short. I heard some shorthand on a podcast: TLDR, Too long, didn't read.